Darkest Days
by NightWhisper42
Summary: The negotiations have failed and a war is brewing. Weselton has broken from Arendelle to join with a powerful enemy. Elsa and Anna struggle to hold their kingdom together. Citizens riot, the lands are ablaze and a single stroke may end the war for good.
1. Chapter 1

The moon was bright tonight, shining cheerfully in the sky. As Elsa made her way down the cobbled streets, the wind seemed to pick up, urging her to walk faster.

_A sigh. Disappointment. The young girl looked away, dropping the little castle piece. Her apology was cut off by the sound of wood scraping over wood; her father's chair being pushed away from the table._

She swallowed, trying to ignore the memory. But it was as easy as ignoring...well, Anna, she supposed. The harder she tried the more it tried to catch her attention, begging her to take notice. The thought of her sister brought on a smile. She was doing it more than she ever had as a child she realized, almost sadly. Of course, they were mainly reserved for Anna and not for too long. It started to hurt her cheeks if they were there for longer than half a minute. She didn't have a clue how Anna was able to smile for so long every day.

Blinking, the Monarch took in her surroundings. She had gone farther than she planned, having been mindlessly walking as her thoughts skipped from one thing to another. Elsa would never admit it, but she had a bad habit of spacing out. After her father had stopped visiting her, she had begun to daydream. Once her mother's became less frequent as time passed, she fully slipped into her own world, ignoring most of the people who tried to break her out of it.

_Elsa could hear the murmurs getting louder, coming closer. The girl lay so still that one could mistake her for a corpse. Shifting ever so slightly, the hold she had on her pillow tightened. The voices had stopped. Now there was only the faint sound of footsteps on carpet. Had they..? Yes! Elsa thought, trembling. They had stopped. She calmed herself, burying her excitement under layers of ice. Years of being disappointed and ignored allowed her to do this with relative ease. It was better, she knew with a certainty, to avoid hoping. But she always hoped anyway. She hoped her door would open, spilling soft light across her face. That her parents would walk in, maybe...Elsa shut her eyes. Maybe, if they thought she was asleep, they wouldn't be scared. They would walk up and say goodnight or wake her up to hug her, kiss her. Elsa desperately missed their hugs. The walking had started again. No! No no, please! Please stay, come back! Mama, please, I only wanted a answer came in a low song. A sweet melody that rose and fell like ocean waves, a voice that promised everything would be okay, that she was loved and cherished. It flowed from Anna's room. I wasn't gonna hurt you. The song seemed to twist around the girl, making her tears fall faster. There would be no hugs tonight. She had scared them away, again._

Though the cold didn't bother her, Elsa tugged the jacket closer to herself anyway.

_The library was a comfortable, perfectly warm temperature. So absorbed in the book in front of her, the sound of her little sister went unnoticed. So when Anna flung her arms around her, from behind she might add, the older sister startled, frosting the pages under her skin. So much for finishing up her study on the different plants and poisons within the forests of Arendelle.._

"_You're so cold!"_

_Elsa opened her mouth to answer and the next thing she knew a jacket was being forced on her. And Anna was eager to remind her that she would definitely, absolutely lose their argument, one of which Elsa hadn't planned on getting into. So she sat in silence, and when Anna gave her a concerned smile, Elsa gave a small one back, trying to ignore how the library had just grown uncomfortably hot. _

Stopping to rest, the woman gave a passing glance at the nearby stables. Smaller than the royal stables but noticeably bigger than any average ones. Squinting, Elsa could just make out a flag pinned against the back walls of each separate section. Purple and green with a yellow flower, Arendelle's crest. Which meant these horses were for one group of people.

"_If you move your knight you can capture my Queen," Elsa said softly. "And then-or you can do that.."_

_Anna grinned as she jumped her pawn to collect the white bishop. Shooting her sister a smug look, she leaned back, hands behind her head._

Elsa shuddered. The memory, though a pleasant one, reminded her of worse times.

"_That's enough!" The King roared._

_Elsa tightened her hold on the knight, panting. Ice had shot out from the horse's mane. It was frozen over, the mini icicles giving a look of spikes. Any other time, Elsa would have laughed, pretending it was a dragon of some sort. The long face and elegantly curved neck (and of course, the spikes protruding from it) certainly made it look that way. Her father's anger whisked away any imagination. But Elsa was angry, too._

"_It's not fair!" She screamed, noting with satisfaction the shocked look on his face. It felt good to scream for once. "I wanted to play! But all you ever talk about are my powers!"_

"_Elsa-" he pushed away, standing tall._

"_It's always-always just...conceal, don't feel. That's all you care about."_

_Having gotten a little bit too excited, first for getting to play a game with her father and then actually beginning to BEAT him, a light snowfall had started to cover them. And then their game had turned into a lecture on controlling her powers so she wasn't feared or harmed. _

"I'm sorry, Papa," She whispered to the stars. "You were just trying to protect me I know. I shouldn't have…"

_Having fled to her room sobbing, she didn't dare speak to him the rest of the night. And, after a week had dragged by with not a single invitation to the library, she made a crude board out of ice. The pieces were rough, the shapes off, but that didn't matter. Elsa could play all she wanted without worry. She practiced each day, playing for both sides. Sometimes she'd pretend it was her father sitting across from her, other times it was Anna. She would have been messing with the pillows restlessly, having little patience for the game. The best time was when her mother had come in, on her birthday. They played well into the night, the Queen admiring the icy replicas with gentle warmth and, as the sun set, singing quietly to her daughter._

A patch of dark stood out against the lighter black of the stables. It moved, Elsa blinked, and it was gone. Steeling herself, for she had powers and whoever this was most certainly did not, she walked in the direction it had gone.

_Anna was clearly struggling to contain herself. She had seen the winning move. Elsa masked her emotions. She felt bad it wouldn't be a genuine win, but to see the excited joy on her sister's face, to watch her eyes light up, it was worth going easy. Anna had only beaten her twice, and Elsa yearned to see that look again, craved it. _

"I know you're there," She said calmly. "Come out."

To her surprise, the girl obeyed, emerging from the shadows to stand in front of her. She had a hardened look to her and her hand was twitching in a peculiar way. They moved as one, not a moment's hesitation between the both of them.

"_Elsa…" She fiddled with the Rook in her hand, running a thumb down its side. "It's not treason to beat the Queen at chess, is it?"_

_There was a playful glint in her sister's eye as she prepared to make her move._

"_Yes, actually. I'm surprised you didn't know that."_

"_You're lying," Anna burst out, slamming the Rook down. "It is not!" _

"_It's not," Elsa agreed slowly, studying the board for any way out. "But for you, dear sister, I'll make an exception."_

_The look on Anna's face had her double over in laughter, as much as she tried to hide it. When she straightened up again a pillow smacked her in the face._

It was over in a minute. Three spears of ice had formed, razor sharp icicles. One pierced the wood just under her arm. The other was sticking out of her kneecap, a mess of shattered bone. The last had gone through her throat and into the wood behind. So shocked was the Queen that she didn't even notice her own wound until she stumbled back, causing a hot flash to streak up her side. The dagger quivered slightly from between her ribs and Elsa's body shook with a wet cough.

"_Checkmate," Anna chirped._


	2. Chapter 2

_Anna sighed, running a finger over the frost coated book. Squinting, she tried to make out the words but the white made it almost impossible so she pushed it away. A glance outside had her stomach twist. The clouds were turning from a cold grey to warm oranges and yellows. The sun was rising with no sign of Elsa. _

_The twist had turned into a nauseating feeling. People were emerging and as Anna passed them, searching for a flash of snowy hair, her unease grew. Murmurs up ahead spurred her to move faster._

_The Princess leapt from the horse to see what the group was gathering around. Squirming between the crush of bodies, she could make out the sleeve of a purple jacket. Her jacket, the one Elsa had taken with her…_

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

_Course ropes were being looped around her sister's wrists, binding her to the bed. She moaned, pulling against them instinctively. _

"_Is that really necessary?" Anna was stroking the arm next to her, trying to give it some of her warmth._

"_If it goes any further down, her lung will puncture." The man stated matter of factly as he finished tying the knot._

"_But-"_

"_Hold her steady!" The physician barked, one hand planted on the Queen's shoulder as the other curled around the hilt sticking out of her._

_Anna swallowed, pressing down as Elsa's body strained against her. A bead of red caught her attention._

"_Stop," Anna cried out as the dagger slid up a few centimeters. "The ropes are cutting her!"_

_Her pleas went unanswered and the steel continued to slide out from her ribs. The shriek that tore from her sister's throat made Anna's vision blurry. It cleared and blurred again as tears fell, landing on the face under hers. _

_The stench rising from her sister's wound alone was enough to make the Princess heave, but the sight of the dagger being pulled slowly from her nearly sent Anna over the edge. _

_A clink of steel on wood. The dagger was out. Anna immediately pulled Elsa to her, shushing her and wiping at the wet spots on her skin._

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Anna slowly shut her door, knowing the servants weren't scheduled to come around for awhile. A few long strides and she was kneeling by her bed. Her fingers caught on the telltale bump and she worked her nails under it, pulling up the loose plank. Anna, having found what she was looking for, set it back into place and settled onto her bed.

It was torn around the edges, the result of nervous hands messing with fragile paper. The writing was neat, sharp, cramped. Neither sister had thought of it as worrisome at first, but in light of recent events, the words seemed to have a certain quality to them, a promise that blood would be shed, have no doubt about it.

Anna read quickly, her face blank. She knew the words by heart and read it out of habit now.

"...henceforth, Weselton shall know longer negotiate with Arendelle...all trade will be promptly stopped and any ship in our waters shall be seized.." Anna dropped down to the very bottom where the writing grew messy, scrawled across the page as if the Duke only had seconds to write.

'_And, if as much as a single snowflake is seen near Weselton, we shall consider it a declaration of war and act accordingly.'_

Anna rolled it up tight as her thoughts wandered.

"_Why does it look like that?" Anna had seen enough injuries to know that Elsa's was more than a little abnormal. _

_The physician remained silent. A light touch to the raw flesh caused the woman to cry out._

"_Shhh," Anna murmured, running a hand through her hair. With the other she pulled at the knots binding Elsa to the bed. _

Her desperation had driven her to the empty room in the hopes that there may be advice waiting for her. The massive book stole her attention. It lay open in the same position that Anna had left it in. The pages were stuck together, a result of water drying on them. Anna gave a tug and the paper split. Guilty slamming it shut, she ran from the library before anyone could notice.

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

"Elsa?" The room was dark. Carefully making her way to the bed, for the floor was slippery, she stopped a few feet away. A chunk of ice lay glittering at her feet. It appeared to be an arm. The rest of the body had been smashed to shards, the features unrecognizable. She shivered and turned to the bed. The blankets were crumpled and pillows had been strewn about. A glittering layer of ice ran over the sheets where sweat must've frozen.

"I'm over here, Anna."

The voice set her heart pounding. Her feet slid from under her, sending her sprawling. Her arm was hurting again. As she struggled up, using the bedside table as leverage, Elsa turned. The sun beat against her from where she stood by the window.

Elsa was pale, more so than usual. A red patch told Anna that her wound had reopened. But that wasn't what bothered her. The wound could be stitched up again. It was the fear in the Queen's eyes. Anna felt her throat close up. She wanted to look away, to yell at her to look away. She wanted to wrap her arms around her and hold her, so she'd know everything would be okay. But it wasn't. And she couldn't pretend, not even for her.

"I hope," she said with a faint chuckle as she made her way to her, "That you aren't planning on doing that to our people." Her gaze flickered from Elsa to the pile of ice and back again.

The look in her older sister's eyes wasn't reassuring.

"Is it true?" Her voice was quiet. The room darkened as clouds passed by the sun. A light shaking had started. A cool hand touched Anna's upper arm, pressing gently against the skin. She let out a sigh as the sting began to fade, leaving only the cold feeling of the Queen's skin against hers. Snowflake were spinning down beyond the castle walls.

_People had gathered around their fallen ruler and they all took a step back when they saw her. Soldiers rushed in, forming a protective wall between the citizens and the Queen. Anna signaled for two guards, who came immediately, hoisting Elsa up. She watched quietly, helping to steady her as they tied her to a horse. Once she was secure with no risk of falling off, Anna turned away to take in the scene. A dusting of blood soaked snow marked where her sister had collapsed. People were muttering._

_The voices grew as she pushed through them to reach the stables. A body hung limp against the wall, held in place by wicked spears of ice. Anna shuddered, moving closer to observe. A flash caught her eye._

"_Help me with this," She ordered._

_A soldier came forward and began chipping at the caked blood. Bits crumbled away and the crest took shape, the colors shining even brighter in the hastily rising sun, seeming to taunt Anna._

Wind beat against the glass and Anna took an unconscious step back.

_The crowd was starting to look, pushing against each other to get closer. _

_More men stepped forward, flanking Anna. Their hands rested against the hilts of their swords and a few were drawn. As her voice rose, high and laced with fear, the remaining weapons were unsheathed, pointed in the direction of the mob._

"_This is a citizen of Arendelle."_

_The second it was out she regretted saying it. Heads were turning. Hostile eyes met her own and a drop of sweat ran down her spine, leaving goosebumps in its wake. _

"_Princess."_

_She wasn't sure which of her knights had said it, but she was quick to obey without argument. Her steed flicked its tail as she mounted, eyeing the people closest to it warily. _

_At the word, some dam broke in the collective thoughts of the people and they threw themselves at her. Some of the knights mounted their own horses and drew closer, while the rest remained standing to hold off the frenzied group._

The snow was falling faster.

_Her arm was burning. The rock bounced off to clatter into the looming shadows of someone's house. An arm was lowering and Anna felt her heart twist. The baker who had greeted her with a smile, not a month before, was staring with satisfaction at the cut his throw had left. As the entourage thundered away, she twisted around to watch as he picked up another, aiming for her head._

Elsa's hand was warm. Her fingers were digging into Anna. Both of them were looking outside, far away in their own separate memories. A blizzard was raging.


	3. Chapter 3

Elsa was throwing up again. Anna, holding a glass of water ready, winced at the sound.

"Elsa?" She called tentatively. A door opened to reveal her sister, pale and sweaty. "Here."

She accepted and sat next to Anna, drinking quickly.

"Woah woah, easy," Anna took the water from her. Knowing it was the only thing helping the hunger made her reluctant, but she didn't want her sister retching anymore. "C'mon, let's get you washed up."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

The thin crust broke easily under Elsa's heel. The water below had cooled considerably, lapping against her burning skin as she slid under.

Anna gathered up the discarded pile of clothes with a faint smile. Elsa's tension had fled and she sat with her head lolling back against the edge of the tub. Kneeling, she wrapped an arm around the bare shoulders to help steady her.

"Alright, hair first…" Soap was scrubbed into it, bubbles cascading down the curve of Elsa's back.

"Anna," Elsa muttered, pulling away from the hand resting on her shoulder. "I can wash myself."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

"Do you remember what they looked like?"

"What?" Anna smoothed the jacket out as she worked to button it. It was the only one she could find in the Queen's closet. And though it was originally hers, Elsa wore it more than she ever had. So Anna has officially handed ownership over to her. And she was glad she had, seeing as Elsa had none of her own.

"The...people..that attacked you-us," She paused, helping with the last button before continuing. "Who were they?"

Anna stared at her. A week had gone by since the Queen had learned about the attack. It hadn't been mentioned since. Anna had, in all honesty, assumed she'd forgotten. "Why?"

"I want to question them-" She began.

"Elsa, _no_. That's not necessary." Anna was quick to cut her off.

"_Anna_." The water refroze. "They tried to _kill _you."

Warm hands cupped her face. "Hey. Look at me, Elsa. I'm fine, I'm alright. Not a scratch on me."

Her eyebrow rose as she pressed on the scab.

"Okay, besides that one!"

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

"Majesty!" The soldier snapped to attention.

"Captain," Elsa greeted, shifting more of her weight onto Anna. And immediately regret the decision when she started jabbing at her shoulder, trying to get her attention. "The soldiers that accompanied your princess the morning of the attack. Gather them, as well as your best men. My sister can't seem to recall who attacked her. Perhaps your men will have better luck."

He gave a nod.

Elsa was pressed to the wall now, a safe distance from her sister's prodding. "I want every man, woman and child brought to me."

"My Queen, if you would permit-"

"Yes, go ahead." She waved him on, not wanting to waste time.

"Erm, why do you need these people? The princess," he shot Anna a small smile, "Is unharmed. Surely there is no need-"

She glanced at Anna, studying the scab running along her arm, and forced everything down and away. "For questioning."

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Anna couldn't pay attention. Her fingers kept going to her dress, twisting and pulling at the dark material. An old man had stepped forward, eyes darting as he addressed the Queen. The words flowing from his mouth had jumbled together into a solid, incessant hum. Arendelle's citizens had been invited to the throne room to voice their complaints, in the hopes that it would soothe and calm the growing tension. Because deny as they might, everyone could sense it.

Elsa didn't notice the man leave, to be replaced by a woman and her husband. She barely heard as they started on how they had a baby to feed, how the recent blizzard had ruined any chance of their crops growing. How their business would fail, that they'd starve. She wanted to hear, but her ears were ringing and their voices were fading quickly.

Summoning one of the guards standing at the ready by her shoulder, she spoke quietly.

"How many more?"

"There are ten currently waiting to see you, majesty."

Elsa frowned at that, straightening back up with some difficulty.

With a promise to reimburse them for the damage, she dismissed the young couple and waved the next person forward. Her head was throbbing. A hand jerked up, rubbing hard at the aching temple. It eased it, somewhat. Ignoring the worried looks Anna kept giving her, she beckoned them closer and listened. A promise was given to them and the next group, though everybody knew they wouldn't be kept. She heard a door open and close somewhere to her right. A glance at her sister's now empty seat confirmed the sound. With an irritated sigh, she ordered the last group in.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Weaving around a few servants, who dipped their heads respectfully when they saw her, Anna made her way down the hall. Feeling the chill even from here, she pushed the door open and stepped inside. The ice has long since melted away, but the temperature remained low. A small horse sat on the windowsill, colors flickering through the ice as the light hit it. A blanket of snow lay across the kingdom, though it was more like to be slush by now.

"Princess Anna!"

Jumping, Anna grabbed at the piece as it slipped from her hands to shatter against the floor.

"What?" Anna glared at the man.

"The Queen-collapsed-"

"_What?" _Anger melted into fear as she stood and pushed past him, abandoning the pile of sparkling shards.


	4. Chapter 4

_The fog was approaching. _

_Elsa watched it part before her, like peasants scurrying out of a queen's path._

The throne room was painted with blood. It dropped steadily down the walls and ran rivers over the floor. The guests that had been the last to check in with the Queen formed a limp pile against the wall. They were, from what Anna could see, alive. Alive, and covered with small nicks and gashes.

_It edged through the forest she had woken up in._

_Her head was..no, this was her head. Her mind. The realization struck suddenly and she had to grab one of the many trees to keep her balance._

"Ice splintered."

Anna sent a quizzical look the guard's way.

"_Majesty." A voice behind her greeted._

"The ice," he tapped his foot down. The light thump sent a crack through the frozen water. "It broke into shards. That lot fainted before it could even touch em, but.."

A nod was all that was needed. The guard understood and went quiet, watching as she maneuvered past. The glittering expanse was little more than frost, but already it was hardening, layering over itself.

"_What have you done?!" Elsa screamed. "Why would you-...why? What have I ever done to you? I tried to be the queen Arendelle deserves.."_

Anna quickened her step. Elsa, laying near the thrones, jerked.

The outstretched arm twitched and sent another frosty blast into the air.

"_You've tried." Her visitor confirmed. "And you've failed."_

"_Wh-"_

"_Why," she snarled, circling the distraught woman, "should we be forced to live in fear?"_

_Elsa had to twist to keep her in view._

Now only steps away, the Princess kneeled.

Jagged bolts of ice were shooting away from the Queen. Frost spiraled up the walls, lengthening into icicles that glittered maliciously at the people below.

_The stranger's pace made the fog swirl. It eddied up around them, muffling their voices, blocking their sight._

The cold was far worse over here. Foggy breaths puffed from Anna's lips as she took in the sight.

Red beads lay by the Queen, as if holding court over her. Some were frozen, some just beginning to freeze. A spasm threw Elsa's hand into their midst, scattering them into smears. Her lips, like Anna's, were parted slightly. Droplets jumped from them, raining onto her face and neck, adding to the now ruined collection by her arm.

_Elsa felt as if she was standing in the eye of a hurricane._

"_Why should we have to worry that any day you might have another breakdown and kill us all!"_

"...Elsa?"

"_What did you do to me?" The Queen repeated in a whisper._

"_You didn't really think I'd try to kill the Ice Queen with any old dagger, did you?" Elsa's company smiled._

Her back arched. The soft, dead skin around her wound oozed pus and A scream worked its way from her throat, a wail of pain and fury. The ice crackled in sympathy.


End file.
